Bill Carmody

Head Coach

Bill Carmody is in his fourth season as the head men’s basketball coach at the College of the Holy Cross in 2018-2019. He owns a career record of 326-291, after earning his 300th career victory when the Crusaders defeated Harvard 63-52 on Nov. 22, 2016.

During the 2017-2018 campaign, Carmody’s squad reached the semifinals of the Patriot League Tournament, while ranking second in the conference in scoring defense (67.7 points per game), field goal percentage defense (43.1 percent) and blocked shots (3.4 blocks per game). In 2016-2017, Holy Cross had the top defensive team in the Patriot League, leading the conference in scoring defense (62.1 points per game) and steals (9.4 steals per game). Carmody’s team also led the Patriot League in turnover margin (+4.9 turnovers per game) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.23-to-1).

During the 2015-2016 season, Carmody led the Crusaders to their first NCAA Tournament victory since 1953 and their first Patriot League Tournament title since 2007. His team won all four of its Patriot League Tournament games on the road, becoming the first team in conference history to accomplish that feat. Holy Cross downed Lehigh 59-56 in the Patriot League championship game, before posting a 59-55 victory over Southern at the NCAA First Four in Dayton, Ohio.

The 17th head coach in the history of the program, Carmody joined the Crusaders with 32 years of Division I coaching experience, including 17 seasons as a head coach. From 2000-2013, Carmody served as the head coach at Northwestern University. In the four years from 2008-2012, he guided the Wildcats to four consecutive winning seasons, with his 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 teams both recording a then-school record 20 victories. Carmody, who previously spent four seasons as the head coach at Princeton University from 1996-2000, led his teams to eight postseason tournament appearances (two trips to the NCAA Tournament and six trips to the National Invitation Tournament) before joining the Crusaders. In addition, he was selected as the Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year in 2003-2004.

Over the years, Carmody has been nationally recognized as one of the top coaches in the college game. He has been labeled the best offensive coach in college basketball by Sports Illustrated. Sports Illustrated’s college basketball writers have also voted him one of the 15 best coaches in the college game.

During the 2014-2015 season, Carmody served as a special assistant / advisor to the head coach at Fairfield University. He previously spent 13 seasons at Northwestern, guiding the Wildcats to one of the most successful stretches in the history of the program. He won 192 games during his time at Northwestern, good for the second-most victories in school history behind only Arthur Lonborg (236 wins / 1928-1949). Carmody’s teams also made a school-record four straight postseason appearances from 2009-2012, with four consecutive trips to the National Invitation Tournament. In addition, the Wildcats won at least six Big Ten games in eight of his 13 years at the helm, after accomplishing that feat only six times in the previous 31 seasons.

Carmody’s Northwestern teams were widely recognized for their willingness to share the basketball, while not turning it over. In each of his last seven seasons with the Wildcats, the team ranked in the top 15 in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio. Carmody’s teams were also extremely proficient from beyond the three-point line during his time at Northwestern, with his squads occupying the top five spots in the school’s record books for three-point field goals made in a season. In addition, his 2009-2010 team set a Big Ten record with 170 three-pointers made in conference games.

In 2010-2011, the Wildcats made the deepest postseason run in school history, advancing to the quarterfinal round of the National Invitation Tournament before falling in overtime at Washington State. Along the way, Carmody picked up career win No. 250 in Northwestern’s Big Ten tournament victory over Minnesota.

The Wildcats’ 10-1 start in 2009-2010 allowed them to earn their first national ranking in 41 years, coming in at No. 25 in the Associated Press poll on Dec. 28, 2009. Later that season, a victory over No. 6 Purdue at home marked the highest-ranked team Northwestern had defeated in 31 years. The Wildcats would finish the year by averaging a Big Ten-best 68.7 points per game in conference play, marking the first time they led the league in scoring since 1966-1967.

In 2008-2009, Carmody guided Northwestern to one of the top turnarounds in the country, leading them from eight wins the previous season to a then school regular-season record-tying 17 victories. The Wildcats also raised their conference win total from one to eight, marking the largest Big Ten increase since Minnesota went from three wins in 2003-2004 to 10 the following season. Along the way, Northwestern defeated ranked opponents in consecutive games for the first time in program history. The Wildcats beat No. 18 Minnesota at home before going on the road to top No. 7 Michigan State. Coupled with a win at No. 19 Purdue, Northwestern defeated two ranked teams on the road in the same season for the first time. The three wins over ranked teams were the school’s most since the 1993-1994 campaign.

During the 2003-2004 season, Carmody earned Big Ten Coach of the Year honors, after leading the Wildcats to an 8-8 mark in Big Ten play. The Wildcats’ fifth place finish in the conference standings that year was their best since 1968-1969, while their 8-8 record was their best in league play since 1967-1968.

Prior to his time at Northwestern, Carmody was the head coach at Princeton from 1996-2000. During his four-year tenure, he guided the Tigers to an overall record of 92-25 (.786) and an Ivy League mark of 50-6 (.893), while leading the team to the postseason each year. His squad went 24-4 record in his first season (1996-1997), the third best first year mark for a Division I head coach in 30 years. Carmody followed that up with an even better sophomore campaign in 1997-1998, when Princeton finished with a 27-2 record, a Top 10 national ranking and advanced to the second round of the 1998 NCAA Tournament.

Carmody’s Princeton team claimed the 1998 Rainbow Classic title in Hawaii with wins over Florida State, Texas and Charlotte on consecutive nights, and in the 1999 NIT they defeated Georgetown and North Carolina State before falling in the quarterfinal round. Princeton had winning streaks of 20 games and 19 games under Carmody (the two longest streaks in school history), and his teams set 31 school records during his tenure. He was also named the United States Basketball Writers’ Association District II Coach of the Year and the New Jersey Coach of the Year each of his first two years. In addition, Carmody is one of only five men to coach a team to a perfect Ivy League record (in both 1996-1997 and 1997-1998), and is the only coach to do so in his first year.

From 1982-1996, Carmody served as an assistant coach at Princeton under Pete Carril. The Tigers made seven trips to the NCAA Tournament during his first 14 years on the staff, which included a victory over defending national champion UCLA in 1996. Carmody was previously an assistant coach at Providence for one year (1980-1981) and at Union College for four years (1976-1980). He began his career as the head coach at Fulton-Montgomery Community College in Johnstown, N.Y., leading the team to a 17-10 record and conference title in his only season there (1975-1976).

A native of Spring Lake, N.J., Carmody graduated from Union in 1975 with a bachelor’s degree in history. A basketball standout, he led Union to a 59-11 record in three seasons as a starter. During his senior year, he captained the Dutchmen and was named first team All-ECAC as well as the school’s Most Outstanding Athlete.